Clarke County, Iowa

Founding: 1851 (declared in 1846)
Parent county: Unorganized territory

Namesake: James Clarke, Iowa territorial governor
Seat: Osceola (1851–)

Land area: 431 square miles

Population (2020): 9,748

Population (historic): 5,427 (1860); 11,513 (1880); 12,440 (1900); 10,384 (1930)

Periods of population growth: 1850–1880; 1890s; 1970s; 1990–2020

Subdivisions: Four cities; 12 townships

National Register listings: Nine

Pre-1940 residences (estimated): 1,484 (35.3%)
Pre-1940 housing survival rate: 44.5%
Pre-1860 housing survival rate (1940): 1.9%

Farm housing in disrepair (1950): 4.3%

Nonfarm housing in disrepair (1950): 10.9%

Average farmhouse value (1930): $1,494
Average outbuilding value (1930): $1,353
Average farmhouse size (1940): 6.1 rooms
Number of farms (1920): 1,488
Average farm size (1920): 135.1 acres
Sources of settlement: Iowa, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Pennsylvania
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Osceola

Namesake: Osceola, Seminole leader

Founding: 1851 (platting); 1851 (post office); 1866 (incorporation)

Population (2020): 4,929

Population (historic): 1,298 (1870); 2,120 (1890); 2,416 (1910); 2,871 (1930)

Periods of population growth: 1851–1900; 1910–1950; 1970–2020
Pre-1940 residences (estimated): 782 (34.9%)
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Outstanding Buildings

1. *John Kyte Farm (1856). 2875 Mormon Trail Road. Franklin. Razed.